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Omega-3 therapy cannot replace traditional dry eye treatments
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PUNTA DEL ESTE, Uruguay — Omega-3 fatty acids help reduce ocular surface inflammation and improve symptoms of dry eye, but they cannot replace standard treatments for lacrimal dysfunction, according to a physician speaking here.
"Omega-3 therapy should be treated as a secondary, not primary, treatment for lacrimal dysfunction," Fernando de Santiago, MD, of Uruguay, said in his presentation at the Curso Regional Panamericano.
In a 4-year study, 20 patients received 1 g of omega-3 per day, and 20 patients received 3 g of omega-3 per day.
"Patients reported feeling better, but it was a subjective assessment since there are no objective methods to show the improvement," he said.
Although high dietary intake of omega-3 essential fatty acids decreases the risk of developing dry eye disease, tear tests done during the study did not find major differences. Therefore, he said, "omega-3 treatment should be used as complementary therapy to tested treatments for light and moderate dry eye, but cannot replace it."